In 1936, Ludwig Bemelmans painted scenes of the Twin Cities to illustrate an article in Fortune magazine. If the style looks at all familiar, it's probably because you're remembering Bemelmans' most famous creation — a Parisian schoolgirl named Madeline.

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In 1936, Ludwig Bemelmans painted scenes of the Twin Cities to illustrate an article in Fortune magazine. If the style looks at all familiar, it's probably because you're remembering Bemelmans' most famous creation — a Parisian schoolgirl named Madeline.

In this painting, you can see the Cathedral of St. Paul and what I am pretty certain is the James J. Hill House — a massive, red sandstone mansion that is actually across the street and down a half block from the Cathedral. Bonus fact: The Hill House was built by the railroad magnate behind what is now Amtrak's Empire Builder route from Seattle to Minneapolis. In fact, that was his nickname. James "The Empire Builder" Hill. I'm not kidding. The house is open for tours and it's pretty fantastic. Plus, you get to watch a nice video which assures you that while James J. Hill was, technically, a union-busting robber baron, he also really liked kittens. Again, not kidding.

]]>http://boingboing.net/2012/10/11/paintings-of-minneapolis-and-s.html/feed2Maggie speaking at three events in Minneapolis next weekhttp://boingboing.net/2012/04/13/maggie-speaking-at-three-event.html
http://boingboing.net/2012/04/13/maggie-speaking-at-three-event.html#commentsFri, 13 Apr 2012 18:47:43 +0000http://boingboing.net/?p=154556a live taping of the interview show Bright Ideas. Thursday is my book launch party for Before the Lights Go Out, which will be at the Bakken Museum—an awesome museum dedicated to the history and science of electricity. Finally, Saturday is the 2012 Earth Day Tweetup at the Science Museum of Minnesota. I'll be speaking there, as will activist Shawn Otto and explorer Will Steger. ]]>http://boingboing.net/2012/04/13/maggie-speaking-at-three-event.html/feed1Maggie in a silent auction to support Phillips Neighborhood Medical Clinichttp://boingboing.net/2012/02/07/maggie-in-a-silent-auction-to.html
http://boingboing.net/2012/02/07/maggie-in-a-silent-auction-to.html#commentsTue, 07 Feb 2012 16:51:28 +0000http://boingboing.net/?p=142624The Phillips Clinic, a free healthcare provider that serves more than 1000 patients in Minneapolis.]]>The Phillips Clinic, a free healthcare provider that serves more than 1000 patients in Minneapolis. Come to the Clinic's annual silent auction where you'll be able to bid on awesome items like gift cards, a hot air balloon ride, and a presentation by me! If you win me, I'll come talk to your lab/students/friends/cats about how to better communicate science to the general public. Bidding starts at 6:00 pm, this Thursday, at the University of Minnesota's McNamara Alumni Center. ]]>http://boingboing.net/2012/02/07/maggie-in-a-silent-auction-to.html/feed6Twin Cities BoingBoing Winter Meetup: January 28http://boingboing.net/2011/12/22/twin-cities-boingboing-winter.html
http://boingboing.net/2011/12/22/twin-cities-boingboing-winter.html#commentsThu, 22 Dec 2011 15:08:05 +0000http://boingboing.net/?p=135581

Mark your calendars, Twin Citians. The Powderhorn Park Art Sled Rally is January 28. If you've never been, you're missing out. It's a Happy Mutant-filled fun fest of creatively themed homemade sleds careening down a steep hill, ridden by costumed characters. It's also the perfect way to cure some depth-of-winter blues. Check out the video to see, among other things, a sled shaped like a 20-sided die.

I'll be joining BoingBoing readers for a meetup before this year's rally. Hopefully, you can come! We'll meet at 1:00. Reader Emily Lloyd has graciously volunteered her home, across the street from Powderhorn Park, for the meetup location. Bring what you'd like to drink. Bring a snack to share. At 2:00 or so, we'll walk to the park to watch the sledding. More details are on the BoingBoing Meetup page. See you there!